Spherical shaped laundry helper

ABSTRACT

A flexible bag that can be formed in the shape of a spherical shaped container configured to contain large items for washing and large wet items for drying. The spherical shape of the container prevents the large items from becoming entangled during the process of washing or drying.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention is directed to mesh bags for wash or tumble dry large items that have a tendency to get wadded up or entangled preventing proper washing and/or drying and a method of using the mesh bags.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is well known that washing and drying linens can be problematic. Linens and blankets tend to get entangled during washing or drying leading to improper washing, drying and wrinkles. This results in multiple cycles being used in the attempt to properly launder linens and blankets.

Current products for washer/dryer laundry bags are often square and smaller in size, solely concentrating on the separation and protection of smaller items such as bras, hosiery, blouses and shoes. These laundry bags can also get wadded up in the wash/dry cycles due to their smaller sizes.

It is an objective of the present invention to provide a washing or drying bag that improves the washing or drying of laundry items, especially large items. These items are cleaned more thoroughly throughout and secondarily come out of the mesh bags virtually free of wrinkles.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A flexible bag that can be formed in the shape of a spherical shaped container configured to contain large items for washing and large wet items for drying, the spherical shape of the container prevents the large items from becoming entangled during the process of washing or drying.

The spherical shaped container is constructed from a flexible mesh material or breathable or porous fabric or material.

The spherical shaped container has a first opening on a top and a second opening on the bottom, the opening in the bottom having an expandable diameter with an elasticized opening allowing the spherical shaped container to achieve a spherical bottom when filled with the large items for washing or drying, the opening in the top opening has an adjustable diameter adjusted by the user by cinching a drawstring with a slidable adjustment piece.

The spherical shaped container can have varying sizes with a preferred diameter of at least 30 inches and may vary in size based on the size of the large items including linens, blankets, or other large bedding items placed in the spherical shaped container.

The spherical shaped container prevents straps or belts from getting entangled during washing or drying and may be used for items with hardware such as overalls and washable belts in both washing and drying preventing damage to the hardware as well as preventing damage to a washer or inside of a drying chamber.

The drawstring can be an elasticized cord wherein the second opening in the bottom of the bag has a fixed diameter when fully expanded, which when not fully expanded has a variable size diameter less than the fully expanded diameter controlled by an elasticized material encircling the second opening, the second opening is stretched by the large items and achieves a spherical bottom.

The shape of the spherical shaped container eliminates the possibility of becoming wadded up or entangled when two or more are used in the same washing or drying chamber.

The present invention allows for a unique way to wash or dry large items like bedding including fitted sheets, sheets and blankets. The method includes placing a flat sheet in a first spherical shaped container; placing a fitted sheet into a second spherical shaped container; inserting the first and second container in a washer or a dryer. The pillow cases or other small items remain loose outside of the spherical shaped containers; running the washer or dryer through a cycle; removing the spherical shaped containers and items from the washer or dryer; and taking the fitted sheet and flat sheet from the respective spherical shaped container.

These and other embodiments are described in more detail below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the presently disclosed invention and, together with the description, disclose the principles of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the front of the spherical shaped container of the present invention.

FIG. 2A shows a preassembly view of the square cut shape which forms the body of the invention.

FIG. 2B shows a preassembled view of FIG. 2A which is a square cut shape folded in half.

FIG. 3 shows a top view of the spherical shaped container.

FIG. 4 shows a bottom view of the spherical shaped container.

FIG. 5 shows a side view of the spherical shaped container with the top opening fully opened.

FIG. 6 shows an exemplary use of the spherical shaped container with a fitted sheet placed inside.

FIG. 7 shows an exemplary use of the spherical shaped container with a flat sheet placed inside.

FIG. 8 is a view of an exemplary washer with two spherical shaped containers.

FIG. 9 is a view of an exemplary dryer with two spherical shaped containers.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

This invention is directed to a spherically shaped container 100 in which to contain linens and prevent wadding and entanglement during washing or drying which will minimize added cycles to properly wash and dry larger items.

In one embodiment, the container 100 is spherical in shape and has one singular opening 2 that may be adjustable via a manual locking mechanism allowing the user to determine opening size for insertion of larger items. The user may then cinch the opening to the desired size for the washing and/or drying cycle of the items being laundered.

In another embodiment, the spherical container 100 may have two openings, one opening 2 at the top and another opening 8 at the bottom. One or both openings 2, 8 may be fixed dimensions, elasticized fixed dimensions or adjustable dimensions.

The spherical shaped container may be made of a supple material that may be a mesh material or other open porous fabric or material.

With reference to FIG. 1 , an overall view of the front of the spherical shaped container 100 and the different components necessary for improved laundering of linens, blankets and other larger items is illustrated. The body 1 of spherical shaped container 100 is constructed of fabric, preferably of a mesh material which may have holes of different sizes and shapes creating the mesh material. The size of the body 1 of the spherical shaped container 100 as shown has a 36 inch diameter. The size of the body 1 may vary, but is of a dimension which allows for washing and drying of large items while preventing wrinkling and improper washing and drying caused from insufficient space.

As shown in FIG. 5 , the top opening 2 in the body 1 of the spherical shaped container 100 through which items are passed in order to fill the body 1 of spherical shaped container 100. The openings 2, 8 may have an adjustable or fixed dimension.

The top opening 2 has a channel 3 through which a cord 4 of an elastic or other material passes which will gather up closing the top opening 2 as the cord 4 is pulled on both ends to adjust the size of the top opening 2. This channel 3 is constructed by folding over the top edge of the body 1 in preassembly, as shown in FIG. 2A, and sewing a straight line along the entire length of the folded edge leaving the channel ends 3A of the channel 3 open.

The channel ends 3A will remain open to allow the cord 4 to pass through leaving each end 6 of the cord 4 hanging out evenly of the channel ends 3A as shown in FIG. 1 .

A slidable locking adjustment piece 5 is utilized to secure the cord 4 after adjusting to a desired length as shown in FIG. 1 at the top opening 2. This adjustment piece 5 determines the size of the opening 2 in the top of the spherical shaped container 100 and should be adjusted such that the contents cannot escape the container 100 during the washing or drying cycle.

The cord ends 6 can have knots 7 or other hardware placed on the cord ends 6, which prevents adjustment piece 5 from sliding off the cord ends 6 at the location 6A.

The bottom opening 8 of spherical shaped container 100 is shown in FIGS. 1 and 4 . This opening 8 may be adjustable similar to the top opening 2 or may have a fixed dimension when fully stretched. The fully stretched fixed dimension could be maintained by an elastic, stretchable or non-stretchable cord 10 of a non-adjustable length. The fixed opening is about ⅙th of the size of the overall outside diameter of the spherical shaped container 100. For example, in the exemplary spherical shaped container 100 of the present invention, the outside diameter D is 36 inches and the fixed bottom opening is 6 inches. Alternatively, the adjustable bottom opening has elastic sewn inside the hemmed casing which can stretch open to more than twice the fixed size. For example, a 3 inch unstretched opening can expand to 6 inches or a 6 inch opening can expand to 12 inches. The elastic cord 10 as shown is about ⅛th of an inch in diameter.

FIG. 4 also shows a channel 9 at the bottom opening 8 through which cord, elastic or other material 10 is passed. The channels 3, 9 allow the user to gather up and reduce the size of the top or bottom opening 2, 8 when cord 4, 10 length is pulled to shorten the opening circumference to ensure large items remain in the spherical shaped container 100. These adjustments keep the container spherical.

FIG. 2A shows a preassembly view of the square cut shape that forms the body 1 of the spherical container 100. To assembly the spherical shaped container 100, the top edge is folded over to form the channel 3 turning the raw edge 11 under to create a second folded edge 12. Then a stitch line 13 is sewn along the second folded edge 12 to form the channel 3 leaving the channel ends 3A open. FIG. 2A shows the stitch line 13 forming the channel 3 at the top opening 2. Similar steps are used to form the bottom opening 8 with stich line 19 forming channel 9 with open ends 9A and raw edge 21 and second folded edge 22. The second folded edge 12, 22 is necessary to create the spherical shaped container 100. The stitch line 13 and channel 3 control the size of the opening 2 necessary to pass articles being washed/dried in the container 100. The dedicated openings of channel ends 3A are shown at each end of the preassembly view. The side edges 14 of the preassembly square cut shape are illustrated in FIG. 2A.

FIG. 2B shows a preassembly view of square cut shape of FIG. 2A folded in half. Stitch line 13 forms the channel 3 as previously shown. As illustrated in FIG. 2B, stitch line 15 along edges 14 of the square cut shape joins the two edges 14 together.

In FIG. 2B, the square cut shape of FIG. 2A is folded in half with the side edges 14 lined up and joined together with stitch line 15 that is sewn along the side edges 14 for a specified distance from the edge leaving channel openings 3A, 9A open, not sewn closed. The square cut shape is then turned inside out so the stitched seams are inside and finished edges are outside on the finished product. Then the cord, elastic or other material 4 is passed through the channel 3 leaving the cord ends 6 hanging out through the open channel ends 3A.

The cord ends 6 are then passed through the adjustment piece 5 pulling the cord 4 evenly so cord ends 6 extend a sufficient length to adequately open and close the spherical shaped container 100 after being filled with linens, blankets, etc.

A knot 7 or similar hardware is placed at each cord end 6 to prevent the adjustment piece 5 from coming off of the cord 4.

The same procedure can be used for bottom opening 8 to create an adjustable, expandable, stretchable opening. For a fixed dimension opening 8, pass the cord 10 through channel 9 permanently securing the ends of the cord 10 by sewing these ends together with a very strong stitch pattern or by attaching plastic or other hardware.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the spherical shaped container 100 showing the preferred size with a 36-inch diameter while in its spherical shape. This shows the body shape of spherical shaped container 100 when items needing laundered are inside. FIG. 3 also shows the top opening 2 where the items needing laundered physically pass through.

FIG. 3 illustrates the completed tightening assembly with channel 3 along top opening 2 of the spherical shaped container 100 and channel openings 3A with cord 4 passing through channel 3 and coming out of channel openings 3A enabling the spherical shaped container 100 to be tightened or loosened s needed. The adjustment piece 5 is shown securing the cord 4 to maintain the opening 2 size during the laundering process. The knots or hardware 7 placed on cord ends 6 are also shown that keep the adjustment piece 5 from coming off the cord ends 6 at locations 6A.

With reference to FIG. 4 , a bottom view of the spherical shaped container 100 is shown. FIG. 4 shows an exemplary size of a 36-inch diameter of the spherical shaped container 100 when items needing laundered are inside. A fixed bottom opening 8 is shown with elastic or non-elastic cord 10 in the channel 9.

With reference to FIG. 5 , an exemplary view of the spherical shaped container 100 is shown with the top opening 2 fully opened to place items in or take them out. The fixed bottom opening 8 is shown in this view.

As shown in FIGS. 6-9 , the preferred method of washing or drying large items with the spherical shaped containers 100 uses 2 of the spherical shaped containers 100. This contributes to successfully performing the task of drying the large items, specifically, sheets. One spherical shaped container 100 is used for one fitted sheet 30 and a second spherical shaped container 100 is used for one flat sheet 40 as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 , respectively. FIG. 8 shows two of the spherical shaped containers 100 and loose pillowcases 50 in an exemplary washing machine 200W. Similarly FIG. 9 shows an exemplary dryer 200D with two of the spherical shaped containers 100 and loose pillowcases 50. The round shape of the spherical shaped containers 100 prevents entangling. The large size facilitates airflow for drying and minimizes wrinkling. The circular opening in bottom 8 contributes to the spherical shape and facilitates air flow. The closeable top circular opening 2 facilitates filling with large items to be washed or dried, such as drying wet fitted or flat sheets and removing the freshly dried sheets. The preferred mesh material utilized for fabrication of spherically shaped container 100 facilitates air flow for drying. The elasticized cord 4, 10 in top and bottom openings 2, 8 facilitates ease of opening for placing fitted 30 or flat sheets 40 in or out of the spherically shaped containers 100.

The foregoing is provided for purposes of illustrating, explaining, and describing embodiments of this invention. Modifications and adaptations to these embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art and may be made without departing from the scope or spirit of this invention.

Variations in the present invention are possible in light of the description of it provided herein. While certain representative embodiments and details have been shown for the purpose of illustrating the subject invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in this art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the scope of the subject invention. It is, therefore, to be understood that changes can be made in the particular embodiments described which will be within the full intended scope of the invention as defined by the following appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A flexible bag that can be formed in the shape of a spherical shaped container configured to contain large items for washing and large wet items for drying, the spherical shape of the container prevents the large items from becoming entangled during the process of washing or drying.
 2. The spherical shaped container of claim 1 is constructed from a flexible mesh material or breathable or porous fabric or material.
 3. The spherical shaped container of claim 2 has a first opening on a top and a second opening on the bottom, the opening in the bottom having an expandable diameter with an elasticized opening allowing the spherical shaped container to achieve a spherical bottom when filled with the large items for washing or drying, the opening in the top opening has an adjustable diameter adjusted by the user by cinching a drawstring with a slidable adjustment piece.
 4. The spherical shaped container of claim 1 has varying sizes with a diameter of at least 30 inches.
 5. The spherical shaped container of claim 4 may vary in size based on the size of the large items including linens, blankets, or other large bedding items.
 6. The spherical shaped container of claim 1 prevents straps or belts from getting entangled during washing or drying.
 7. The spherical shaped container of claim 1 may be used for items with hardware such as overalls and washable belts in both washing and drying preventing damage to the hardware.
 8. The spherical shaped container of claim 1 may be used for items with hardware such as overalls and washable belts in both washing and drying preventing damage to a washer or inside of a drying chamber.
 9. The spherical shaped container of claim 3 wherein the drawstring is an elasticized cord wherein the second opening in the bottom of the bag has a fixed diameter which when not fully expanded has a variable size diameter less than the fully expanded diameter controlled by an elasticized material encircling the second opening, the second opening is stretched by the large items and achieves a spherical bottom.
 10. The spherical shaped container of claim 1 wherein the shape of the spherical shaped container eliminates the possibility of becoming wadded up or entangled when two or more are used in the same washing or drying chamber.
 11. The present invention allows for a unique way to wash or dry large items like bedding including fitted sheets, sheets and blankets, the method comprises the steps of: placing a flat sheet in a first spherical shaped container; placing a fitted sheet into a second spherical shaped container; inserting the first and second container in a washer or a dryer; placing pillow cases or other small items loose outside of the spherical shaped containers; running the washer or dryer through a cycle; removing the spherical shaped containers and items from the washer or dryer; and taking the fitted sheet and flat sheet from the respective spherical shaped container. 